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When I was younger I use to paint a lot.  Like all the time.  Mainly still-lifes. I’d paint fruit and other objects all arranged neatly in some dramatic light. I loved the shadows, the way the cloth draped, the colors. Paul Cezanne was my absolute favorite, with Van Gogh being a strong second.  I’d put some music on, grab some fruit and paint. It was relaxing. (Lame, I know.)  The paintings would hang around for a couple months and then I’d paint over them.  (Mainly because I couldn’t stretch a good canvas to save my life and I didn’t want to shell out 50 bucks.)

But sometime during high school I stopped painting.  I realized it wasn’t cool to spend your Saturday at home with brush in hand. Even though I was always known for being the artistic guy around the classroom,  I couldn’t let my hobby effect my social life.  So after a while painting sorta fizzled out and except for a few classes in college, I haven’t painted since.

Lately however, I’ve been working on a collection of photos that bring me back to my painting days. No crazy textures, or  those terrible photoshop-brush-strokes effects.  I just want to try and create the same style and feel, but with a camera.  I want them to be simple. Very simple. I want them to be about light and composition, color and contrast. Its a study and process for myself. There isn’t a story, no recipe, no explanation or moment attached and I think thats OK. I have felt this pressure recently to only take and share photos that tell you something.  Photos that have a purpose. But I wanted to shake that responsibility and feeling. (part of the reason behind the lack of post around here) I used to paint simply because I enjoyed it. (and Im sure I still do.) I couldn’t ever tell you why I painted what I painted, but I didn’t care.  I just cut loose and painted for myself.  So I am going to try and do that.  Set aside time to create and shoot just for me.

I’ll share more later.